Jump Financial LLC Sells 7,040 Shares of Stepan (NYSE:SCL)

Jump Financial LLC trimmed its holdings in Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Free Report) by 51.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,762 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 7,040 shares during the quarter. Jump Financial LLC's holdings in Stepan were worth $438,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Stepan by 110.6% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 457 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Stepan by 781.4% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 617 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 547 shares during the period. KBC Group NV raised its stake in Stepan by 40.8% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,315 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $85,000 after buying an additional 381 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new position in Stepan during the 4th quarter worth approximately $239,000. Finally, Howe & Rusling Inc. raised its stake in Stepan by 24.5% during the 4th quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 4,254 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $275,000 after buying an additional 837 shares during the period. 82.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Susan Lewis acquired 500 shares of Stepan stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $63.53 per share, with a total value of $31,765.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 1,896 shares in the company, valued at approximately $120,452.88. This trade represents a 35.82 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 6.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Stepan Stock Down 2.0 %

SCL stock traded down $1.01 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $50.59. 183,797 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 116,242. The firm's 50 day moving average is $53.89 and its 200 day moving average is $64.03. Stepan has a twelve month low of $44.23 and a twelve month high of $94.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The firm has a market cap of $1.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.89 and a beta of 0.97.

Stepan (NYSE:SCL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The basic materials company reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $593.26 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $562.77 million. Stepan had a return on equity of 4.21% and a net margin of 2.31%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.64 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Stepan will post 3.55 EPS for the current year.

Stepan Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a $0.385 dividend. This represents a $1.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. Stepan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded Stepan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th.

About Stepan

Stepan Company, together with its subsidiaries, produces and sells specialty and intermediate chemicals to other manufacturers for use in various end products worldwide. It operates through three segments: Surfactants, Polymers, and Specialty Products. The Surfactants segment offers surfactants that are used in consumer and industrial cleaning and disinfection products, including detergents for washing clothes, dishes, carpets, and floors and walls, as well as shampoos and body washes; and other applications, such as fabric softeners, germicidal quaternary compounds, disinfectants, and lubricating ingredients.